Transfer of Technology to Japanese Affiliate Plants in Asia Case Study on Automobile and Electronics Industries

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Our research group examines the problem of the international transfer of the production system which sustain the international competitiveness of the Japanese automobile and electronics companies. The study mainly focused on the system related to the human elements of shop-floor. "Application" signifies the aspects of the introduction of the competitive advantages of managerial resources, whereas "Adaptation" means the aspect that Japanese companies adapt to local environments of host countries. We consider how and why the hybrids of the "Application" and "Adaptation" are formed. We executed a field study where targeted plants amounted to 34 in Korea and Taiwan in 1992, and conducted the study of 35 plants in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. However, as the results of ASEAN countries are not organized and analyzed enough, I will introduce research in Korea and Taiwan in this outline.The first and the most important point is that the work organization and motivation systems such as job classification, wage system and promotion system are introduced into the host countries without serious friction. These are preposition of the Japanese style flexible work organization and skill formation. The reason why the application degree is high in terms of core system related to the human elements is that in Korea and Taiwan there are no institutional obstacles such as job control unionism in the United States.Secondry, We should notice that application of the systems is realized under the condition of fewer Japanese expatriates than in the United States.Thirdly, the penetration of actual Japanese method such as foster of multiskilled workers by job rotation and quality control practiced in the work process at each stage of production lags behind the introduction of systems.